Final Stretch of Mass. Senate Race, Labor Leaders in the Spotlight and More in Capital Eye Opener: January 12

Your daily dose of news and tidbits from the world of money in politics:

FINAL COUNTDOWN IN MA: Conservative grassroots supporters came out in full force on Monday to support the candidacy of Republican Scott Brown, who is vying to fill the U.S. Senate seat formerly held by Edward Kennedy (D-Mass.). Brown is facing off against Democratic Attorney General Martha Coakley in a special election next Tuesday, January 19. His campaign reportedly raised $1.3 million on Monday (nearly triple their goal). At the end of December, Brown had about $367,000 in cash on hand, and Coakley had about $937,000 in cash on hand. Polls for the race have shown a wide variance in outcomes — with varying predictions on just how many Democrats, Republicans and independents should be considered “likely voters” in the special election. On Monday, Coakley and Brown also met for their final debate, and Coakley’s campaign released this new ad attacking Brown.

UNION LEADERS IN THE SPOTLIGHT: Labor leaders met on Monday with President Barack Obama to discuss the president’s health insurance reform legislation. The proposal, as passed by the U.S. Senate, contains several provisions that unions are not thrilled about — including a tax on high-end “Cadillac” health insurance plans, state-based insurance exchanges rather than a national exchange as was passed by the House and the absence of a public health insurance option. At the National Press Club on Monday, Richard Trumka, the head of the AFL-CIO, also predicted that Congress would soon pass legislation to make it easier for unions to organize. “I think you will see the Employee Free Choice Act pass in the first quarter of 2010,” Trumka said, as reported by the Huffington Post. As Capital Eye has previously noted, both unions and big business have spent big in the fight over that legislation.

WAITING FOR CITIZENS UNITED: The U.S. Supreme Court could rule as early as today or tomorrow on its high-profile campaign finance case, Citizens United v. Federal Election Commission. First argued in March 2009, the case began with a dispute over whether the FEC was right to prohibit an anti-Hillary Clinton movie produced for cable video-on-demand ahead of the 2008 presidential primaries and advertisements for the film, “Hillary: The Movie.” In September 2009, the justices heard expanded arguments regarding the ability of corporations, unions and issue advocacy groups to use their treasuries for unlimited independent expenditures in the run-up to elections. Read more of Capital Eye‘s coverage on this case here.

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